Previews: Walcott & Bendtner back for Arsenal
LONDON - Brief news from the English Premier League before this weekend's matches: Arsenal could hand England forward Theo Walcott his first taste of competitive match action this season for the London club's clash with Blackburn on Sunday while Danish international Nicklas Bendtner has recovered from his car crash last weekend.
Walcott has suffered with a back problem but played against the Greek club Olympiakos Piraeus under-20 side on Tuesday.
"Walcott and Bendtner are available", Arsene Wenger, the club's longest serving manager, told the Arsenal website on Friday.
Goalkeeper Manuel Almunia (chest infection) is a doubt and Croatian international Eduardo da Silva is sidelined with a thigh injury.
Chelsea are without goalkeeper Petr Cech for their match at home to Liverpool on Sunday after the Czech international received a red card last week at Wigan Athletic.
Michael Owen's groin problem is not as serious as first feared and the Manchester United striker could be back as early as next week according to manager Alex Ferguson.
"He'll be fit for Bolton and we're pleased with that," Ferguson told the club's website on Friday, adding that veteran Dutch goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar was not far away from a return after breaking a finger in a pre-season friendly against Bayern Munich.
United host Sunderland on Saturday.
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Stoke City manager Tony Pulis will assess the fitness of Jamaican striker Ricardo Fuller before his team's trip to Everton on Sunday. The forward picked up a groin injury in the League Cup last month.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Ecuador midfielder Segundo Castillo (hamstring) is set to miss the home match against bottom club Portsmouth on Saturday but could be fit for his country's World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Chile later this month.